Today blood collection organizations routinely separate whole blood by centrifugation into its various therapeutic components, such as red blood cells, platelets, and plasma.
Conventional blood processing systems and methods use durable centrifuge equipment in association with single use, sterile processing chambers, typically made of plastic. The centrifuge equipment introduces whole blood into these chambers while rotating them to create a centrifugal field.
Whole blood separates within the rotating chamber under the influence of the centrifugal field into higher density red blood cells and platelet-rich plasma. An intermediate layer of leukocytes forms an interface between the red blood cells and platelet-rich plasma.
In conventional blood separation systems and methods, platelets lifted into suspension in the PRP can settle back upon the interface. The platelets settle, because the radial velocity of the plasma undergoing separation is not enough to keep the platelets in suspension. Lacking sufficient radial flow, the platelets fall back and settle on the interface. This reduces processing efficiencies, lowering the effective yield of platelets.